Once the Soviet Union, under the design leadership of Sergei Korolyov, had got the space exploration under way with Sputnik, it aimed for higher and more-prestigious targets including the Moon and the planets Venus and Mars.

In 1955, Sergei Korolyov put forward a plan to build a multi-stage version of the R-7 rocket which would be capable of sending a payload to the Moon which would be capable of landing on the surface or going into orbit around it. On 28 January 1958, the plan became a formal proposal and by the end of the year, the first launch - albeit unsuccessful - had taken place.

Early Probing - Luna 1, 2 and 3 (1958-1960)

Initial attempts consisted of trying to hit the Moon with an Earth-launched spacecraft and to fly round it, taking photographs of the farside (never before seen by human beings as the Moon orbits the Earth with one face constantly pointing towards it). There was even a proposal to include a nuclear warhead in the payload of a lunar impact spacecraft so that Earth-bound observers could observe the flash of explosion at the moment when it crashed into the surface. There would then be no doubt that the event had happened. The mission never came near to fruition.

All launches in this period used a version of the Vostok rocket, later utilised to orbit the Earth's first piloted spacecraft fom where it took its name. They were launched into direct ascent trajectories taking them directly from the surface of the Earth to the vicinity of the Moon.

Proof of Technology - Luna 4 through Luna 14 (1963-1968)

Once the early programme of guiding a spacecraft to the Moon had proved the concept, attentions were turning to setting a probe gently down onto the Moon in order to take photographs and to make limited measurements of the composition of its surface. Plans also existed to place spacecraft into orbit around the Moon.

These missions needed a more powerful launching vehicle, and the multi-stage Molniya rocket came to the fore - used for both lunar and planetary exploration missions. Another change was a move away from a direct trajectory to one where the spacecraft and its final rocket stage were first placed into a low orbit around the Earth. A little over an hour after launch, a rocket motor was fired to send the craft into a path towards the Moon.

Rocket motors aboard the probes themselves were used while en-route to the Moon to apply small corrections to the trajectory, with the aim of avoiding the near-miss scenario of Luna 1, though this was not always successful (see Luna 4 and Luna 6).

It took many failed attempts and three years of effort before this part of the Luna programme bore fruit, but eventually Luna 9 and Luna 10 respectively became the first craft to land on, and the first to orbit, the Moon in 1966.

The diary below includes the mission of Zond 3, an interplanetary spacecraft which had missed a launch window to Venus during November 1964. It was used as an engineering test for spacecraft systems and took photographs of the lunar farside during 1965 July. It then went into an orbit around the Sun which took it out to the distance of Mars.

The missions of Zond 4, Zond 5 and Zond 6, which took place during this time frame, are not included here as they were tests of spacecraft to be used in the Soviet Union's piloted lunar exploration programme.

All launches in this period used a version of the Vostok rocket, later utilised to orbit the Earth's first piloted spacecraft fom where it took its name. They were launched into direct ascent trajectories taking them directly from the surface of the Earth to the vicinity of the Moon.

Exploring the Moon - Luna 15 through Luna 24 (1969-1976)

From the mid-1960s the race to the Moon against the United States was on. Early Moon landers and orbiters paralleled the American approach of surveying the Moon and its surrounding space. However, when the US concentrated its efforts on getting an Apollo spacecraft and its crew to the Moon, the Soviet Union was developing a range of both piloted and automatic lunar explorers.

Being heavier than the landers and orbiters of the early 1960s, these later probes were designed around the lifting capabilities of the four-stage version of the Proton rocket. Like their immediate predecessors, their journeys to the Moon started with being launched into orbit around the Earth. Both the orbiters and the landers in this series then went into orbit around the Moon. This allowed more precision in selection of landing point. Even so, two of the five landers sustained damage on touchdown and were unable to send soil samples back to Earth.

The race took on a new form during July 1969 - two technologies came head to head in competition. Even as Armstrong, Aldrin and Collins were orbiting the Moon in Apollo 11, Luna 15 was heading for the surface in an attempt to be the first to bring back the first ever sample of lunar soil. In the event the spacecraft crashed as it tried to land. Even had Luna 15 succeeded, it would not have reached Earth again before the American vehicle, so the honour of carrying back the first lunar sample would still have been Apollo 11's.

Date

Time (UTC)

Event

1958 Jan 28

Sergei Korolyov proposes a programme of lunar exploration missions including impact on the Moon and photographing its surface

1958 Sep 23

07:03

E-1-1 spacecraft launched from the Baikonur Cosmodrome by Vostok rocket on a mission to hit the Moon by way of direct ascent trajectory - its launcher disintegrates after 93 seconds

1958 Oct 11

21:42

E-1-2 spacecraft launched from the Baikonur Cosmodrome by Vostok rocket on a mission to hit the Moon by way of direct ascent trajectory - its launcher disintegrates after 42 seconds

1958 Dec 4

17:18

E-1-3 spacecraft launched from the Baikonur Cosmodrome by Vostok rocket on a mission to hit the Moon by way of direct ascent trajectory - its launcher core-stage rocket engine shuts down after 245 seconds

1959 Jan 2

16:41

Luna 1 (E-1-4) spacecraft, also known as 'Mechta' (Dream) launched from the Baikonur Cosmodrome by Vostok rocket on a mission to hit the Moon by way of a direct ascent trajectory

1959 Jan 3

00:56

At a distance of 113,000 kilometres from Earth, the upper stage of Luna 1 launching rocket releases a cloud of sodium vapour, the glow from which is used to aid visual measurement of the trajectory - it is photographed from an observatory near Alma-Ata

1959 Jan 4

02:59

Luna 1 passes 5,995 km from the Moon at a speed near 8,900 kilometres per hour and enters heliocentric orbit, thereby becoming the first artificial planet of the Sun

1959 Jan 4

06:00

Luna 1 is 426,700 kilometres from Earth and 60,400 kilometres beyond the Moon

1959 Jan 4

19:00

Luna 1 is 513,285 kilometres from Earth

1959 Jan 5

07:00

Approx time - Luna 1 radio transmitter ceases to operate when the batteries run out of power at a distance of 600,000 kilometres from the Earth

1959 Jun 18

08:08

E-1-5 spacecraft launched from the Baikonur Cosmodrome by Vostok rocket on a mission to hit the Moon by way of a direct ascent trajectory - a failure of the inertial guidance system 153 seconds after lift-off leads to the rocket being deliberately destroyed

1959 Sep 6

00:49

Scheduled launch attempt for Luna 2 (E-1-6) - the launch is aborted

1959 Sep 8

02:40

Scheduled launch attempt for Luna 2 (E-1-6) - the launch is aborted

1959 Sep 9

03:40

Scheduled launch attempt for Luna 2 (E-1-6) - the launch is aborted

1959 Sep 12

06:39

Luna 2 (E-1-6) spacecraft launched from the Baikonur Cosmodrome by Vostok rocket on a mission to hit the Moon by way of a direct ascent trajectory

1959 Sep 12

12:00

Luna 2 is 126,400 kilometres from Earth above a point to the north of New Guinea

1959 Sep 12

18:39

En-route to the Moon, the upper stage of Luna 2 launching rocket releases a cloud of sodium vapour, the glow from which is used to aid visual measurement of the trajectory - it is observed in the constellation Aquarius at a stellar magnitude between 4 and 5

1959 Sep 13

21:02

Luna 2 impacts on the Moon at a speed of three kilometres per second near 30 degrees north, 1 degree west, in the Palus Putredinis

1959 Sep 13

21:32

Approximate time - Luna 2 final rocket stage impacts on the Moon

1959 Oct 4

00:43

Luna 3 (E-2A-1) spacecraft launched from the Baikonur Cosmodrome by Vostok rocket on a mission to fly past and photograph the Moon by way of direct ascent trajectory.

1959 Oct 6

14:16

Luna 3 passes 6,200 km from the Moon

1959 Oct 7

03:30

Luna 3 photographs the hidden side of the Moon from an altitude of 65,200 km altitude - its camera system takes a series of 29 photographs over a period 40 minutes, covering 70% of the surface - film is developed automatically aboard the spacecraft and is then scanned to allow radio transmission of the images

1959 Oct 10

Luna 3 reaches a distance of 480,000 kilometres from the Earth

1959 Oct 18

Luna 3 is back in the vicinity of Earth and transmits 17 of its photographs in facsimile format - a later attempt at re-transmission fails when signals are not received

1959 Oct 18

15:50

Luna 3 completes its first orbit of the Earth-Moon system

1960 Mar 29

Combined gravitational effects on the trajectory of Luna 3 cause it to re-enter the Earth atmosphere where it is destroyed by frictional heating. It has completed 11 revolutions around the center of the Earth-Moon system (the barycentre)

1960 Apr 15

15:06

E-3-1 spacecraft launched from the Baikonur Cosmodrome by Vostok rocket on a mission to hit the Moon by way of a direct ascent trajectory - under-performance of the final rocket stage means that it has insufficient velocity to reach the Moon

1960 Apr 16

E-3-1 spacecraft reaches a distance of 200,000 kilometres from the Earth and then falls back

1960 Apr 16

E-3-1 spacecraft re-enters the Earth atmosphere where it is destroyed by frictional heating

1960 Apr 19

16:07

E-3-2 spacecraft launched from the Baikonur Cosmodrome by Vostok rocket on a mission to hit the Moon by way of a direct ascent trajectory - the launcher breaks up just after lift-off due to incorrect thrust from one of its strap-on boosters

1963 Jan 4

08:49

E-6-1 spacecraft launched from the Baikonur Cosmodrome by Molniya rocket into low orbit around the Earth at 64.9 degrees inclination - it mission is to soft land a camera module onto the lunar surface

E-6-1 lunar spacecraft re-enters the Earth atmosphere and is destroyed by frictional heating.

1963 Feb 3

09:29

E-6-2 spacecraft launched from the Baikonur Cosmodrome by Molniya rocket towards a low orbit around the Earth at 65 degrees inclination - it mission is to soft land a camera module onto the lunar surface but control of the rocket is lost 295 seconds after lift-off and it is destroyed.

1963 Apr 2

08:16

Luna 4 (E-6-3) launched from the Baikonur Cosmodrome by Molniya rocket into low orbit around the Earth at 65 degrees inclination - it mission is to soft land a camera module onto the lunar surface

1963 Apr 2

09:34

Final stage of Luna 4 launching rocket fired to place it into a trajectory towards the Moon

1963 Apr 3

Luna 4 rocket engine fails to fire for a trajectory correction so the spacecraft stays on a course which will miss the Moon

1963 Apr 6

01:26

Luna 4 passes 8,336 kilometres from the Moon - it enters barycentric orbit at distances ranging between 89,250 and 694,000 kilometres from Earth

1963 May 9

08:56

Final stage of Luna 5 launching rocket fired to place it into a trajectory towards the Moon

1964 Mar 21

08:15

E-6-4 spacecraft launched from the Baikonur Cosmodrome by Molniya rocket towards a low orbit around the Earth at 65 degrees inclination - it mission is to soft land on the lunar surface but problems with the third-stage of its rocket prevent it from reaching orbit

1964 Apr 20

08:08

E-6-5 spacecraft launched from the Baikonur Cosmodrome by Molniya rocket towards a low orbit around the Earth at 65 degrees inclination. It mission is to soft land a camera module onto the lunar surface - it fails to reach orbit

1965 Mar 12

09:36

Cosmos 60 (lunar spacecraft E-6-9) launched from the Baikonur Cosmodrome by Molniya rocket into 195 x 248 kilometre orbit around the Earth at 64.7 degrees inclination - it mission is to soft land a camera module onto the lunar surface but the final stage rocket engine fails to fire, leaving it stranded in Earth orbit

1965 Apr 10

E-6-8 spacecraft launched from the Baikonur Cosmodrome by Molniya rocket towards a low orbit around the Earth at 65 degrees inclination - it mission is to soft land on the lunar surface but problems with the third-stage of its rocket prevent it from reaching orbit

1965 May 9

07:49

Luna 5 (E-6-10) launched from the Baikonur Cosmodrome by Molniya rocket into approx 150 x 225 kilometre orbit around the Earth at 64.8 degrees inclination - it mission is to soft land a camera module onto the lunar surface

1965 May 12

19:10

Luna 5 retro-rocket fails to fire and it crashes onto the Moon near 31 degrees South, 8 degrees West, in the Mare Nubium area, and a 220 x 80 kilometre dust cloud, which lasts for ten minutes, is noted by an observatory at Rodeswich in Germany - touchdown was planned for 19:15

1965 May 17

Cosmos 60 re-enters the Earth atmosphere and is destroyed by frictional heating

1965 Jun 8

07:40

Luna 6 (E-6-7) launched from the Baikonur Cosmodrome by Molniya rocket into approx 170 x 250 kilometre orbit around the Earth at 64.8 degrees inclination - it mission is to soft land a camera module onto the lunar surface

1965 Jun 8

08:47

Final stage of Luna 6 launching rocket fired to place it into a trajectory towards the Moon

1965 Jun 9

Luna 6 rocket engine fails to shut down as planned at the end of a course-correction manoeuvre so all fuel is exhausted - the spacecraft is consequently in a trajectory which causes it to miss the Moon

1965 Jun 11

17:00

Luna 6 passes 159,613 kilometres from the Moon - it may have gone into orbit around the Sun

1965 Jul 18

14:38

Zond 3 launched from the Baikonur Cosmodrome by Molniya rocket into approx 164 x 210 kilometre orbit around the Earth at 64.8 degrees inclination - it mission is an engineering test of an interplanetary spacecraft

1965 Jul 19

23:40

Zond 3 passes 9,200 kilometres behind the Moon and takes a series of 25 photographs of the far side and later transmits them to Earth - it then continues into orbit around the Sun

1965 Oct 4

07:56

Luna 7 (E-6-11) launched from the Baikonur Cosmodrome by Molniya rocket into 129 x 286 kilometre orbit around the Earth at 64.8 degrees - it mission is to soft land a camera module onto the lunar surface

1965 Oct 4

09:03

Final stage of Luna 7 launching rocket fired to place it into a trajectory towards the Moon

1965 Oct 5

Luna 7 rocket engine is used to correct its trajectory towards the Moon

1965 Oct 7

22:08

Luna 7 retro-rocket fires early and after it shuts down, the spacecraft gathers speed and is destroyed as it crashes onto the Moon near 9 degrees north, 40 degrees west in the Oceanus Procellarum

1965 Dec 3

10:46

Luna 8 (E-6-12) launched from the Baikonur Cosmodrome by Molniya rocket into approx 170 x 250 kilometre orbit around the Earth at 51.8 degrees inclination - it mission is to soft land a camera module onto the lunar surface

1965 Dec 3

11:53

Final stage of Luna 8 launching rocket fired to place it into a trajectory towards the Moon

1965 Dec 4

Luna 8 rocket engine is used to correct its trajectory towards the Moon

1965 Dec 6

21:51

Luna 8 retro-rocket fires late and the spacecraft is destroyed as it crashes onto the Moon near 9.1 degrees north, 63.3 degrees west in the Oceanus procellarum - although the landing is a failure, the mission completes the experimental development of a stellar-orientation system and methods of controlling from the Earth of radio equipment, flight trajectory measuring equipment and other instrumentation

1966 Jan 3

01:40

Approx time - Cosmos 111 re-enters the Earth atmosphere and is destroyed by frictional heating

1966 Jan 31

11:41

Luna 9 (E-6M) launched from the Baikonur Cosmodrome by Molniya rocket into 167 x 219 kilometre orbit around the Earth at 51.8 degrees inclination - its mission is to soft land a camera module onto the lunar surface

1966 Jan 31

12:48

Final stage of Luna 9 launching rocket fired to place it into a trajectory towards the Moon

1966 Feb 1

19:29

Luna 9 rocket engine is fired for 48 seconds in order to correct its trajectory towards the Moon

1966 Feb 3

18:44

Luna 9 soft lands on the Moon surface at 7.13 degrees north, 60.36 degrees west in the Oceanus Procellarum

1966 Feb 4

01:50

Luna 9 transmits the first of three series of TV pictures over a period of 107 minutes which are then assembled into a panoramic view of the landing site

1966 Feb 4

14:00

Luna 9 transmits the first of second series of TV pictures over a period of 174 minutes which are then assembled into a panoramic view of the landing site - they reveal that Luna 9 has shifted its position slightly which permits a stereoscopic view to be built up

1966 Feb 6

20:37

Luna 9 transmits three further series of TV pictures over a period of 138 minutes

1966 Feb 6

22:55

Luna 9 final radio transmission ceases when its batteries are exhausted - it has been in radio contact with Earth for a total of 8 hours and 5 minutes over its three-day period of operation and has returned a total of 27 individual photographs of the lunar surface

1966 Mar 1

11:03

Cosmos 111 (E-6S-204) launched from the Baikonur Cosmodrome by Molniya rocket into 182 x 194 kilometre orbit around the Earth at 51.8 degrees inclination - it mission is to enter orbit around the Moon but loss of control of the final rocket stage whilst still in orbit around the Earth prevents its engine from being fired

1966 Mar 31

10:46

Luna 10 (E-6S-206) launched from the Baikonur Cosmodrome by Molniya rocket into approx 190 x 220 kilometre orbit around the Earth at 51.8 degrees inclination - its mission is to enter orbit around the Moon

1966 Mar 31

11:53

Final stage of Luna 10 launching rocket fired to place it into a trajectory towards the Moon

1966 Apr 1

Luna 10 rocket engine is used to correct its trajectory towards the Moon

1966 Apr 3

18:44

Luna 10 fires its retro-rocket for 57s with engine shutdown at 18:45:39 UTC, resulting in a 350 x 1,017 kilometre orbit around the Moon at 67° 9' 37" inclination

1966 Apr 3

19:00

Luna 10 Immediately on completion of the engine firing, an instrumented payload compartment separates from the flight vehicle and begins its mission to study gamma-radiation, electric and magnetic fields, micro-meteoroids, the solar wind, infrared emissions from the Moon itself, and radiation conditions in the lunar environment

1966 Apr 3

Luna 10 transmits a sythesised rendering of the song 'Internationale' - it is relayed to the Congress of the Communist party of the Soviet Union where it is played to the delegates

1966 May 30

Luna 10 radio transmitters are switched off when battery power becomes too low after 460 orbits around the Moon, and 219 active data transmissions - its orbit is 378 x 985 kilometres at 72.0 degrees inclination

1966 Aug 24

08:03

Luna 11 (E-6LF-101) launched from the Baikonur Cosmodrome by Molniya rocket into approx 195 x 220 kilometre orbit around the Earth at 51.9 degrees inclination - its mission is to enter orbit around the Moon

1966 Aug 24

09:10

Final stage of Luna 11 launching rocket fired to place it into a trajectory towards the Moon

1966 Aug 26

19:02

Luna 11 rocket engine is used to correct its trajectory towards the Moon

1966 Aug 28

21:49

Luna 11 enters a 160 v 1,200 kilometre orbit around the Moon at 27 degrees inclination and begins its studies of lunar gamma and X-ray emissions in order to determine the Moon chemical composition, lunar gravitational anomalies, the concentration of meteoroid streams near the Moon and the intensity of hard corpuscular radiation near the Moon - although intended to return photographs of the Moon surface, it fails to do so

1966 Oct 1

02:03

Luna 11 batteries fail and radio transmissions cease after 277 orbits around the Moon and 137 active data transmission s,

1966 Oct 22

08:42

Luna 12 (E-6LF-102) launched from the Baikonur Cosmodrome by Molniya rocket into approx 199 x 212 kilometre orbit around the Earth at 51.9 degrees inclination - its mission is to enter orbit around the Moon

1966 Oct 22

09:45

Final stage of Luna 12 launching rocket fired to place it into a trajectory towards the Moon

1966 Oct 23

19:10

Approx time - Luna 12 rocket engine is used to correct its trajectory towards the Moon

1966 Oct 25

20:45

Approx time - Luna 12 enters a 100 x 1,740 kilometre orbit at 10 degrees inclination and begins its mission of photographing the lunar surface in the area of the likely landing zone of a piloted mission - each photograph contains 1100 scan lines with a maximum resolution of 15-20 metres - it also carries a test version of the electric motor being developed to drive the upcoming Lunokhod lunar rover

1966 Oct 27

Luna 12 transmits to Earth its first images of the Moon surface

1966 Dec 21

10:16

Luna 13 (E-6M-205) launched from the Baikonur Cosmodrome by Molniya rocket into 171 x 223 kilometre orbit around the Earth at 51.8 degrees inclination - its mission is to soft land a camera module onto the lunar surface

1966 Dec 21

11:23

Final stage of Luna 13 launching rocket fired to place it into a trajectory towards the Moon

1966 Dec 22

18:41

Luna 13 rocket engine is used to correct its trajectory towards the Moon

1966 Dec 24

17:59

Luna 13 fires its retro-rocket

1966 Dec 24

18:01

Luna 13 soft lands on the Moon surface at 18.87 degrees north, 62.05 degrees west in the Oceanus Procellarum

Luna 12 batteries fail and radio transmissions cease after 602 orbits around the Moon and 302 active data transmission s

1967 May 16

21:43

Cosmos 159 (E-6LS-111) launched from the Baikonur Cosmodrome by Molniya rocket into 208 x 395 kilometre orbit around the Earth at 51.8 degrees inclination - it mission is to test communications and tracking systems

1967 May 16

23:02

Final stage of Cosmos 159 launching rocket fired to place it into an orbit of 350 x 60637 kilometres at 51.6 degrees inclination

1968 Feb 7

10:43

E-6LS-112 spacecraft launched from the Baikonur cosmodrome by Molniya rocket, aimed for a low orbit around the Earth at 51.8 degrees inclination - its mission is to test radio communications and spaceraft tracking techniques both en-route and in orbit around the moon in preparation for a piloted lunar mission , but a problem with the launching rocket prevents it from reaching orbit and the spacecraft, together with the upper stages of the rocket, is destroyed as they re-enter the atmosphere

1968 Apr 7

10:09

Luna 14 (E-6LS-113) spacecraft launched from the Baikonur cosmodrome by Molniya rocket, aimed for a low orbit around the Earth at 51.8 degrees inclination - its mission is to test radio communications and spaceraft tracking techniques both en-route and in orbit around the moon in preparation for a piloted lunar mission

1968 Apr 7

11:16

Final stage of Luna 14 launching rocket fired to place it into a trajectory towards the Moon

1968 Apr 8

19:27

Luna 14 rocket engine is used to correct its trajectory towards the Moon

1968 Apr 10

19:25

After reducing its speed from 2190 m/s to 1279 m/s, Luna 14 enters 160 x 270 kilometre orbit around the Moon at 42° inclination. In addition to its test role in connection with the piloted lunar programme, it carries instruments to study the Moon gravitational field and the Earth-Moon gravitational relationship, the solar wind and cosmic rays - it also carries a test version of the electric motor being developed to drive the upcoming Lunokhod lunar rover

1968 May 10

00:00

Luna 14 passes its 30 day expected mission duration.

1968 Jul 4

Luna 14 - final communication with Earth at mission end

1969 Feb 19

06:48

E-8-201 spacecraft launched from the Baikonur cosmodrome by four-stage Proton rocket towards a low orbit around the Earth at 51.6 degrees inclination - its mission is to enter orbit around the Moon and then land a Lunokhod remote-controlled roving vehicle on its surface but the launcher is destroyed by an explosion

1969 Jun 14

04:00

E-8-5-402 spacecraft launched from the Baikonur cosmodrome by four-stage Proton rocket towards a low orbit around the Earth at 51.6 degrees inclination - its mission is to enter orbit around the Moon, then land and return a soil sample to Earth but it fails to reach orbit after the launcher third stage fails to fire

1969 Jul 13

03:14

Luna 15 (E-8-5-401) launched from the Baikonur cosmodrome by four-stage Proton rocket into 182 x 247 kilometre orbit around the Earth at 51.5 degrees inclination - its mission is to enter orbit around the Moon, then land and return a soil sample to Earth

1969 Jul 13

04:24

Final stage of Luna 15 launching rocket fired to place it into a trajectory towards the Moon

1969 Jul 14

Luna 15 rocket engine is used to correct its trajectory towards the Moon

Luna 15 rocket engine is fired to change its orbit around the Moon to 95 x 222 kilometres at 126 degrees inclination

1969 Jul 20

14:16

Luna 15 rocket engine is fired to change its orbit around the Moon to 16 x 110 kilometres at 127 degrees inclination

1969 Jul 20

15:47

After completing 52 orbits of the Moon and holding 86 communications sessions with the Earth, Luna 15 fires its rocket engine and begins its descent towards a landing on the Moon surface

1969 Jul 20

15:51

Luna 15 crashes heavily, at 480 kilometres per hour, near 17 degrees north, 60 degrees east, and is destroyed while attempting to land and collect a soil sample for return to Earth - simultaneously, the crew of Apollo 11 is part way through its lunar exploration programme

1969 Sep 23

14:07

Cosmos 300 (E-8-5-403) launched from the Baikonur cosmodrome by four-stage Proton rocket into approx 185 x 200 kilometre orbit around the Earth at 51.5 degrees inclination - its mission is to enter orbit around the Moon, then land and return a soil sample to Earth but the final stage of the launcher fails to fire, leaving it stranded in orbit around the Earth

1969 Sep 27

Cosmos 300, still attached to the fourth stage of its launching rocket, re-enters the Earth atmosphere and is destroyed by frictional heating

1969 Oct 22

14:09

Cosmos 305 (E-8-5-404) launched from the Baikonur cosmodrome by four-stage Proton rocket into 175 x 206 kilometre orbit around the Earth at 51.5 degrees inclination - its mission is to enter orbit around the Moon, then land and return a soil sample to Earth but the final stage of the launcher fails to fire, leaving it stranded in orbit around the Earth

1969 Oct 24

18:05

Approx time - Cosmos 305, still attached to the fourth stage of its launching rocket, re-enters the Earth atmosphere and is destroyed by frictional heating

1970 Feb 6

04:16

E-8-5-405 spacecraft launched from the Baikonur cosmodrome by four-stage Proton rocket towards a low orbit around the Earth at 51.5 degrees inclination - its mission is to enter orbit around the Moon, then land and return a soil sample to Earth, but the launcher fails and the spacecraft fails to reach orbit

1970 Sep 12

13:25

Luna 16 (E-8-5-406) launched from the Baikonur cosmodrome by four-stage Proton rocket into 185 x 241 kilometre orbit around the Earth at 51.5 degrees inclination - its mission is to enter orbit around the Moon, then land and return a soil sample to Earth

1970 Sep 12

14:34

Final stage of Luna 16 launching rocket fired to place it into a trajectory towards the Moon

1970 Sep 13

Luna 16 rocket engine is used to correct its trajectory towards the Moon

1970 Sep 16

23:38

Luna 16 fires its rocket engine and and enters a 110 kilometre circular orbit around the Moon at 70 degrees inclination

Luna 17 (E-8-203) launched from the Baikonur cosmodrome by four-stage Proton rocket into 192 x 237 kilometre orbit around the Earth at 51.5 degrees inclination - its mission is to enter orbit around the Moon and then land the Lunokhod 1 remote-controlled roving vehicle on its surface

1970 Nov 10

15:54

Final stage of Luna 17 launching rocket fired to place it into a trajectory towards the Moon

1970 Nov 12

Luna 17 rocket engine is used to correct its trajectory towards the Moon

1970 Nov 14

Luna 17 rocket engine is used to correct its trajectory towards the Moon

Lunokhod 1 is parked for the lunar night, having travelled 197 metres, returned 14 close up pictures of the Moon, and sent back 12 panoramic views during 10 communications sessions, and conducted analyses of the lunar soil - its protective 'lid' which carries a solar panel is closed

1970 Dec 5

A laser signal is directed at the French-built laser reflector on Lunokhod 1 and is used to measure the precise distance from the Earth to the Moon

1970 Dec 6

A second laser reflection experiment is performed with Lunokhod 1

1970 Dec 9

Lunokhod 1 'lid' is opened and its batteries begin to charge

1970 Dec 10

Lunokhod 1 begins its second lunar day experimental programme

1970 Dec 22

Lunokhod 1 is parked for its second lunar night, 1,370 metres away from Luna 17, and having travelled a further 1,522 metres and continued its programme of photography and soil measurements - its protective 'lid' is closed

1971 Jan 8

Lunokhod 1 'lid' is opened and its batteries begin to charge prior to it third lunar day on the Moon

1971 Jan 17

Lunokhod 1 has returned to Luna 17 and photographs the spacecraft lander on the lunar surface

1971 Jan 20

Lunokhod 1 is parked for its third lunar night, having travelled a further 1,936 metres and continued its programme of photography and soil measurements - it protective 'lid' is closed

1971 Feb 8

Lunokhod 1 'lid' is opened and its batteries begin to charge prior to it fourth lunar day on the Moon

1971 Feb 19

Lunokhod 1 is parked for its fourth lunar night, having travelled a further 1,573 metres and continued its programme of photography and soil measurements and its protective 'lid' is closed - it has reached the end of its originally-planned life

1971 Mar 9

Lunokhod 1 'lid' is opened and its batteries begin to charge prior to it fifth lunar day on the Moon

1971 Mar 20

Lunokhod 1 is parked for its fifth lunar night, having travelled a further 2,004 metres and continued its programme of photography and soil measurements - it protective 'lid' is closed

1971 Apr 8

Lunokhod 1 'lid' is opened and its batteries begin to charge prior to it sixth lunar day on the Moon

1971 Apr 20

Lunokhod 1 is parked for its sixth lunar night, having travelled a further 1,029 metres and continued its programme of photography and soil measurements - it protective 'lid' is closed

1971 May 7

Lunokhod 1 'lid' is opened and its batteries begin to charge prior to it seventh lunar day on the Moon

1971 May 20

Lunokhod 1 is parked for its seventh lunar night, having travelled a further 197 metres and continued its programme of photography and soil measurements - it protective 'lid' is closed

1971 Jun 5

Lunokhod 1 'lid' is opened and its batteries begin to charge prior to it eighth lunar day on the Moon - it workload has been 'lightened' owing to the age of its systems

1971 Jun 18

Lunokhod 1 is parked for its eighth lunar night, having travelled a further 1,559 metres and continued its programme of photography and soil measurements - it protective 'lid' is closed

1971 Jul 4

Lunokhod 1 'lid' is opened and its batteries begin to charge prior to it ninth lunar day on the Moon

1971 Jul 17

Lunokhod 1 is parked for its ninth lunar night, having travelled a further 220 metres and continued its programme of photography and soil measurements - it protective 'lid' is closed

1971 Aug 3

Lunokhod 1 'lid' is opened and its batteries begin to charge prior to it tenth lunar day on the Moon

1971 Aug 16

Lunokhod 1 is parked for its tenth lunar night, having travelled a further 215 metres and continued its programme of photography and soil measurements - it protective 'lid' is closed

1971 Aug 31

Lunokhod 1 'lid' is opened and its batteries begin to charge prior to it eleventh lunar day on the Moon

1971 Sep 2

13:40

Luna 18 (E-8-5-407) launched from the Baikonur cosmodrome by four-stage Proton rocket into 193 x 227 kilometre orbit around the Earth at 51.6 degrees inclination - its mission is to enter orbit around the Moon, then land and return a soil sample to Earth

1971 Sep 2

14:50

Final stage of Luna 18 launching rocket fired to place it into a trajectory towards the Moon

1971 Sep 3

02:00

Visual observations from the Shamakhin Observatory in Azerbaijan are used to measure Luna 18 trajectory at a distance of 100,000 kilometres

1971 Sep 4

Luna 18 rocket engine is used to correct its trajectory towards the Moon

1971 Sep 6

Luna 18 rocket engine is used to correct its trajectory towards the Moon

After firing its onboard rocket engine, Luna 18 orbit around the Moon is now 18 x 100 kilometres at 35 degrees inclination

1971 Sep 11

07:42

After completing 54 orbits of the Moon and holding 85 communications sessions with the Earth, Luna 18 fires its rocket engine and begins its descent towards a landing on the Moon surface

1971 Sep 11

07:48

Luna 18 lands on the Moon at 3.57 degrees north, 56.50 degrees east in the Mare Foecundatis - the ruggedness of the terrain causes it either to land at an awkward angle or to topple over - radio communication is lost

1971 Sep 15

Lunokhod 1 is parked for its eleventh lunar night, having travelled a further 88 metres and continued its programme of photography and soil measurements - it protective 'lid' is closed

1971 Sep 28

10:00

Luna 19 (E-8LS-202) launched from the Baikonur cosmodrome by four-stage Proton rocket into 172 x 260 kilometre orbit around the Earth at 51.6 degrees inclination - its mission is to enter orbit around the Moon and study the surface

1971 Sep 28

11:10

Final stage of Luna 19 launching rocket fired to place it into a trajectory towards the Moon

1971 Sep 29

Luna 19 rocket engine is used to correct its trajectory towards the Moon

1971 Oct 1

Luna 19 rocket engine is used to correct its trajectory towards the Moon

1971 Oct 2

Luna 19 enters 140 kilometre circular orbit around the Moon at 40.6 degrees inclination and begins its programme of studying the lunar gravitational field, the magnetic and electrical environment, and photographing the Moon surface

1971 Oct 4

On the anniversary of the launch of the first Sputnik', Lunokhod 1 is officially declared 'dead', having failed to respond to radio instructions for its revival - it has traveled 10,540 m and transmitted over 20,000 TV pictures and more than 200 TV panoramas, as well as conducting over 500 lunar soil tests

1971 Oct 6

After firing its onboard rocket engine, Luna 19 orbit around the Moon is now 127 x 135 kilometres at 40.6 degrees inclination

1971 Nov 28

After firing its onboard rocket engine, Luna 19 orbit around the Moon is now 77 x 385 kilometres at 40.7 degrees inclination

1972 Feb 14

03:27

Luna 20 (E-8-5-408) launched from the Baikonur cosmodrome by four-stage Proton rocket into 191 x 238 kilometre orbit around the Earth at 51.5 degrees inclination - its mission is to enter orbit around the Moon, then land and return a soil sample to Earth

1972 Feb 14

04:37

Final stage of Luna 20 launching rocket fired to place it into a trajectory towards the Moon

1972 Feb 15

Luna 20 rocket engine is used to correct its trajectory towards the Moon

The Soviet Union announces that Luna 19 is nearing the end of its mission as its onboard systems have deteriorated through age and exposure to space, and propellant for the attitude control system is running low

1973 Jan 8

06:55

Luna 21 (E-8-204) launched from the Baikonur cosmodrome by four-stage Proton rocket into 190 x 235 kilometre orbit around the Earth at 51.6 degrees inclination - its mission is to enter orbit around the Moon and then land the Lunokhod 2 remote-controlled roving vehicle on its surface

1973 Jan 8

08:05

Final stage of Luna 21 launching rocket fired to place it into a trajectory towards the Moon

1973 Jan 9

Luna 21 rocket engine is used to correct its trajectory towards the Moon

Luna 21 rocket engine is used to lower the perilune (lowest height above the Moon) of its orbit

1973 Jan 14

After firing its onboard rocket engine, Luna 21 orbit around the Moon is now 16 x 110 kilometres at 60 degrees inclination

1973 Jan 15

22:29

Luna 21 fires its rocket engine and begins its descent towards a landing on the Moon surface

1973 Jan 15

22:35

After completing 40 orbits of the Moon, Luna 21 lands at 28.85 degrees north, 30.45 degrees in the Le Monnier crater at the eastern edge of the Mare Serenitatis

1973 Jan 16

01:14

Lunokhod 2 descends a pair of ramps on Luna 21 landing stage and moves onto the moon surface - it travels 30 metres from Luna 21 and is parked

1973 Jan 18

Lunokhod 2 is moved to a position where it can take TV pictures of Luna 21 and the area around it before setting out on its travels

1973 Jan 24

Lunokhod 2 is parked for its first lunar night, having travelled 1,260 metres and carried out a programme of photography and soil measurements - it protective 'lid' is closed

1973 Feb 8

Lunokhod 2 'lid' is opened and its batteries begin to charge prior to it second lunar day on the Moon

1973 Feb 23

Lunokhod 2 is parked for its second lunar night, having travelled 9,086 metres and continued its programme of photography and soil measurements - it protective 'lid' is closed

1973 Mar 11

Lunokhod 2 'lid' is opened and its batteries begin to charge prior to it third lunar day on the Moon

1973 Mar 23

Lunokhod 2 is parked for its third lunar night, having travelled 16,533 metres and continued its programme of photography and soil measurements - it protective 'lid' is closed

1973 Apr 9

Lunokhod 2 'lid' is opened and its batteries begin to charge prior to it fourth lunar day on the Moon

1973 Apr 22

Lunokhod 2 is parked for its fourth lunar night, having travelled 8,600 metres and continued its programme of photography and soil measurements - it protective 'lid' is closed

1973 May 8

Lunokhod 2 'lid' is opened and its batteries begin to charge prior to it fifth lunar day on the Moon

1973 Jun 3

Lunokhod 2 is officially declared 'dead', having travelled a further 880 metres (it probably ceased to operate at least two weeks earlier, during the lunar day) - it has traveled a total of 37 kilometres and transmitted over 80,000 TV pictures and 86 TV panoramas, as well as conducting over 700 lunar soil tests

1974 May 29

08:56

Luna 22 (E-8LS-206) launched from the Baikonur cosmodrome by four-stage Proton rocket into 187 x 226 kilometre orbit around the Earth at 51.5 degrees inclination - its mission is to enter orbit around the Moon and study the surface

1974 May 29

10:06

Final stage of Luna 22 launching rocket fired to place it into a trajectory towards the Moon

1974 May 30

Luna 22 rocket engine is used to correct its trajectory towards the Moon

1974 Jun 2

Luna 22 enters a 219 x 244 kilometre orbit around the Moon at 19.6 degrees inclination and begins its programme of studying the lunar gravitational field, the magnetic and electrical environment, and photographing the Moon surface

1974 Jun 9

After firing its onboard rocket engine, Luna 22 orbit around the Moon is now 25 x 244 kilometres at 19.6 degrees inclination

1974 Jun 11

After firing its onboard rocket engine, Luna 22 orbit around the Moon is now 171 x 1437 kilometres at 19.6 degrees inclination

1974 Jun 13

After firing its onboard rocket engine, Luna 22 orbit around the Moon is now 181 x 299 kilometres at 19.6 degrees inclination

1974 Oct 28

14:30

Luna 23 (E-8-5M-410) launched from the Baikonur cosmodrome by four-stage Proton rocket into 183 x 246 kilometre orbit around the Earth at 51.5 degrees inclination - its mission is to enter orbit around the Moon, then land and return a soil sample to Earth

1974 Oct 28

15:40

Final stage of Luna 23 launching rocket fired to place it into a trajectory towards the Moon

1974 Oct 31

Luna 23 rocket engine is used to correct its trajectory towards the Moon

After firing its onboard rocket engine, Luna 23 orbit around the Moon is now 17 x 105 kilometres at 138 degrees inclination

1974 Nov 6

05:31

Luna 23 fires its rocket engine and begins its descent towards a landing on the Moon surface

1974 Nov 6

05:37

Luna 23 lands on the Moon in the Mare Crisium - it is damaged during the landing and the drill is inoperable so it is not possible to retrieve the planned soil sample from 2.5 metres depth

1974 Nov 9

Communications with Luna 23 are terminated

1975 Apr 2

Owing to the effects of the lunar gravitational field, Luna 22 orbit around the Moon is now 200 x 1409 kilometres at 21 degrees inclination

1975 Aug 24

Owing to the effects of the lunar gravitational field, Luna 22 orbit around the Moon is now 30 x 1578 kilometres at 21 degrees inclination

1975 Sep 2

After firing its onboard rocket engine for a final time, Luna 22 orbit around the Moon is now 100 x 1286 kilometres at 21 degrees inclination - all propellant is now exhausted

1976 Aug 9

15:04

Luna 24 (E-8-5M-412) launched from the Baikonur cosmodrome by four-stage Proton rocket into 183 x 246 kilometre orbit around the Earth at 51.5 degrees inclination - its mission is to enter orbit around the Moon, then land and return a soil sample to Earth

1976 Aug 9

16:14

Final stage of Luna 24 launching rocket fired to place it into a trajectory towards the Moon

1976 Aug 11

Luna 24 rocket engine is used to correct its trajectory towards the Moon

1976 Aug 13

23:11

Luna 24 fires its rocket engine and enters a 115 kilometre circular orbit around the Moon at 120 degrees inclination

1976 Aug 16

Luna 24 rocket engine is used to adjust its orbit around the Moon

1976 Aug 17

After firing its onboard rocket engine, Luna 24 orbit around the Moon is now 12 x 120 kilometres at 120 degrees inclination

1976 Aug 18

06:30

Luna 24 fires its rocket engine and begins its descent towards a landing on the Moon surface

1976 Aug 18

06:36

Luna 24 lands on the Moon at 12.75 degrees north, 62.20 degrees east in the Mare Crisium, a few hundred metres from Luna 23

1976 Aug 18

Luna 24 uses a long, hollow drill to collect a 1.6 metre core sample of the lunar surface - it weighs 170 grammes - it is coiled as it is deposited inside the return craft

1976 Aug 19

05:25

Luna 24 return stage fires its rocket motor and begins its journey back to Earth